Friends Of Freshwater Inc. | Community organisation

Friends Of Freshwater Inc.

Phone: 0418611606

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24.01.2022 EXTENSION OF TIME GRANTED until Friday ,3 July, FOR SUBMISSIONS TO DA2020/0543 FOR 11 Units at 50 Lawrence Street, Freshwater Village. Friends of Freshwater has negotiated an extension of time for submissions to this important DA. We argued that there was limited notification of neighbours and beyond: the Manly Daily was now behind a paywall with limited access; and Councils on line newsletter only has a limited but expanding reach. The Two weeks for lodgement of submissions was demonstrably brief for a development proposed for such a headline site.

24.01.2022 Democracy Sausages available at Freshwater Polling Station this Saturday.

23.01.2022 Jacka Park Toilets nearing completion Jacka Park has been heavily used by community for the bulk of its 30+ years of existence. School children and playground users are its major clientele as well as those gathering for Anzac Memorial functions. It has never had toilet amenities, but this will shortly to be rectified with the conversion of a disused storage shed to a two toilet facility. This outcome was first proposed by the Friends of Freshwater in 2012 but was given no pri...ority by Council. More persistent campaigning, with a volume of individual submissions from members, lifted its importance and gained support from Curl Curl Ward Councillors including Michael Regan, as Mayor, and Councillor David Walton, and the wider Council. The amenity will have a baby-change facility and two toilets for those using the park. The toilets will open and close in early morning and around sunset, so as to minimise anti-social behaviour. Many thanks to Councils Lisa Waugh and contractor, Trevor Hitch from 24/7 for their work on bringing this project to fruition.

23.01.2022 Members are invited to attend the Annual General Meeting of Friends of Freshwater Inc. which is to be held at 7pm on Monday 26 October 2020. To keep our members and community safe the meeting will be held virtually via Zoom (see attached zoom meeting details). AGM Agenda: - Apologies & Proxies - Approve minutes from previous meeting... - Approve year-end accounts - Election of office bearers - President's report - Report on other projects - Membership fees See more

23.01.2022 THE DUKE May 2019 - https://mailchi.mp/c8d4499e1955/the-duke-may-2019

22.01.2022 TELSTRA 5G TOWER UNDER CONSTRUCTION IN FRESHWATER VILLAGE ( current) All of the Telcos are racing to get 5G installed ASAP. This is an existing tower strapped onto the eastern side of this ageing Telstra building in Oliver Street, Freshwater. Those with long memories will vividly recall the community fight in the 199oswaged by the Harbord Community Pre School parents over the erection of a tower immediately adjacent to the school. After a lot of negotiations, it was eventually placed on the eastern wall of the Telstra building, well away from the Pre school and with a signal pulsing east and north. This new addition is on The same building within Commonwealth land and as such does not require a DA. Telstra is also very casual with notifications and it may have been placed in an obscure section of a newspaper that is behind a paywall.

22.01.2022 Is this the Most Scenic Workplace on Sydney’s northern beaches? High up on Freshwater Beach’s southern headland, a group of volunteers from the Friends of Freshwater, under the supervision of Northern Beaches Council professionals, have been removing an infestation of weeds so that this prominent Reserve is returned to its native state. All up more than 400 hours of this labour of love have been expended on this work over the last four years. And, although the site is specta...cular, it is not an easy task given the steep and physical nature of the escarpment. The site also attracts a wide array of coastal weeds. A classic is Turkey Rhubarb which produces a chain of underground tubers and thousands of seeds that germinate under native vegetation. These seeds are easily spread by wind and water. If not controlled they suffocate native plants. After a lot of persistent work, we are finally getting on top of this weed and will replace it with native vegetation. Our local Freshwater residents, Cathy, Ann, Paula, Peter, Denver, Mike and David, supervised by Peter Zeigler from Council, deserve a medal for their persistence on this project. See more

22.01.2022 The Duke Mar/Apr 2020 - https://mailchi.mp/bfc06d726a84/the-duke-marapr-2020

20.01.2022 Does anyone know the origins of this steel pole midway along Dee Why Beach?

20.01.2022 A Vibrant Community Needs A Vibrant Village - https://mailchi.mp//a-vibrant-community-needs-a-vibrant-vi

20.01.2022 Annual General Meeting and Year in Review - https://mailchi.mp//annual-general-meeting-and-year-in-rev

20.01.2022 IF YOU LIVE IN THE MANLY STATE ELECTORATE ,SOLDIERS AVENUE NEEDS YOUR VOTE! Vote for the soldiers avenue revitalization program using the link below. Voting closes in a week. https://mycommunityproject.service.nsw.gov.au/project

18.01.2022 Freshwater recognised in Todays Honours List Dear All You may well notice that, in todays Honours List, I have been awarded a Medal of the Order of Australia. To whomever nominated me and those anonymous referees that supported it, many thanks for your written effort on my behalf. My view is that this is also an award for the Freshwater community... The real story of today is that the volunteer activities, such as we do in Freshwater, are done by many people, all of whom deserve recognition. I have the privilege of working alongside so many talented people who give up their time freely for our community. This is how good communities thrive and it makes Freshwater a special place to live. All my best wishes

18.01.2022 We are thrilled that our Soldiers Avenue of Honour Revitalisation Program has been shorlisted for community project funding. However we are not there yet and need your vote to help us obtain the grant. Its a bit complicated to vote but we would really appreciate you making the effort plus there are some other great community projects and you can vote for up to 5. Click on the link below https://mycommunityproject.service.nsw.gov.au/project You will need to sign up or login into My Service NSW account and input your Medicare card details. Thank you!! Your vote is greatly appreciated to continue to build the Soldiers Avenue living memorial.

17.01.2022 PUBLIC ART AND ITS PLACE IN OUR COMMUNITY There has been much discussion and community concern expressed over the commissioning of public art by Northern Beaches Council, using funds provided by the State Government from the merger of the three former Councils. There has also been a great deal of misplaced and sometimes malevolent misinformation (mainly in the social media) as to the factual basis for these proposed commissions. The Friends of Freshwater has been keenly inte...rested in developing meaningful public art in the broader Freshwater community. Over the last 8 years, we have gained grants to commission 2 public sculptures in Jacka Park, a 5 metre mural on the wall of a Service Station in Soldiers Avenue, a commissioned aboriginal art work in Freshwater Village plaza, and a Whale/surfing motif in the same plaza. Our bush regeneration project has also uncovered the stone-carving work of the phantom carver, Mick Leslie, on rock formations on the Freshwater headlands. These artworks are much appreciated by the community. Our interest in Public Art, as a means of creating vibrancy and liveliness in our community, is ongoing. For too long, our community has lacked in this area. In recent years, we have also been closely involved in Council workshops and project teams associated with the Palm Beach to Manly Coastal Walk. Some of these community consultations involved discussion of the most appropriate locations for public art. This consultation has been occurring over a number of years. We are therefore a strong advocate for the location of permanent, commissioned art works in Freshwater and particularly along the coastline between Curl Curl and Queenscliff. Our preferred site for one of these is the Mckillop Park Lookout, (See photo below) where an artwork can be seen from a distanced admired or from close-up. This public art should be tender-commissioned from local professional artists and wherever possible should use local industry in its construction and installation. Local artists in a constrained coronavirus climate would undoubtedly welcome such artistic opportunities.

16.01.2022 Construction started this morning on the long awaited section of footpath on the northern side of Soldiers Avenue, between Oliver Street and Eric Street. This is the culmination of many years of lobbying, firstly to the former Warringah Council and lately the amalgamated Northern Beaches Council by Friends of Freshwater and their associated Soldiers Avenue Stakeholders Group. As you know, for the last 6 years we have been identifying and writing the histories of our soldier...s and their trees. Through grants we have been able to place footpath plaques telling our soldiers stories next to their trees. Unfortunately we still had many trees and no footpath to place more plaques. At the same time, we have been beautifying the trees with surrounding gardens and special attention has been given to the Heroes Tree where today Paradise Landscapes has built a surround of pavers for approximately 40 more memorial pavers. This wonderful outcome is beautifully timed as this year is the Centenary of the Avenue of Honour which will be celebrated in November. The attached photos were taken this morning. As you can see the @northernbeachescouncil workers have wasted no time in forming up the section between Oliver Street and Glen Street before lunch. What a great bunch of fellows they are and so proud to be working on this great project.

16.01.2022 WILD SEAS AND WET, WINDY, WEATHER LASH FRESHWATER We should call for water restrictions more often, because, whenever we do, wild weather and lashings of rain occur. In Freshwater today, wild weather has produced 7 metre swells but no significant beach erosion given the slight southerly direction of the East Coast Low.... At Undercliffe Reserve on Freshwaters southern headland, previous storms have produced soil erosion and washaways. A massive amount of water, from the hard surfaces of Queenscliff roads, washes down into Freshwater Beach along with weed seeds and other debris including plastics. Recent volunteer work by our FOF/NBC Bush Regeneration Team has confined the overflows to the current storm water drainage system. This rainfall will be much appreciated by new native plantings in the Reserve and dunes.

15.01.2022 Generating further public art in Freshwater Village with the winning Youth Art Prize being placed on the Bank Branch wall. The winner,Jericho Cabilao is a student at St Paul's Collage, Manly.

15.01.2022 A Vibrant Community Needs a Vibrant Village For many residents, the amenities provided by a Village represent a second home (or a third one if you go to work). There is an excellent article on Mosman Village in todays SMH that highlights this. Freshwater Village is going through a transitional phase as two, major, main street, residential/commercial developments are being completed. This process has taken the best part of seven years and has been very disruptive to local bus...inesses. When the Harbord Growers closed in 2013 and subsequently moved to Balgowlah, it left a major void in the Village which has yet to be filled. It primarily supplied fresh fruit and vegetables directly from Flemington Markets, and not from a western Sydney cold store as other supermarket chains do. Many in our community fought against an enormous 2012 residential development would have dwarfed the Village. Out of that came a Village Master Plan which prescribed height controls, setbacks, underground parking and laneway closures. These planning controls are in operation and all recent construction has had to abide by these arrangements. The current state of the Village in terms of shop closures and lack of services is in part due to the lack of a Village anchor tenant. This should have been resolved in October 2017 when the 1200sq retail space was completed, but it has been mired in litigation and liquidation proceedings ever since. Inevitably this will be resolved and a supermarket will be operating. We are also stuck with a small number of village landlords, a few of whom are not very community-minded. This is not going to change given the personalities involved. However there are some green shoots emerging:- 1. A new tenant, SKYWORLD, is about to open in the former IGA site in Freshwater Village. It is currently spending < $1m on a fitout. 2. A small outdoor fresh fruit and vegetable market will commence on Sunday 25 August on green space adjacent to the Aboriginal Heritage Centre. It is being run by a local operator called Tim the organic Scarecrow. 3. Wilson Car Parking has gone along with its big end-of-town, automated, car park fees. The 58 car spots are now available for free for those wanting to shop or do other things in the village. 4. The Oceans Development on the northern side of Lawrence Street is progressing well and its shops have been sold to local businesses. This will be ground floor retail with two upper floors of residential accommodation extending back to the Oliver Street Car Park. It is due to open in 2020. 5. Northern Beaches Council is closely looking at ways to activate the streetscape.

15.01.2022 Last day to vote for the Soldiers Avenue of Honour MY COMMUNITY PROJECT application. Has to be done by COB today. Only open to people from the Manly State Electorate. this of course includes Freshwater. Just google My Community Project to register or pass on the link in a previous FB post Many thanks to those who have already voted. Much appreciated. To those that intend to vote ASAP many thanks in anticipation, and when you have voted send us a " done" message.

15.01.2022 https://drive.google.com/open Commemoration in Freshwater pre Covid 2019

14.01.2022 The Duke October 2020 Edition A DECADE OF COMMUNITY ACTIVISM On a pleasant Saturday October morning in 2010, nearly a thousand Freshwater residents, with placards, marched down Lawrence Street in protest against a proposed 100 apartment development on the northern side of the Village. On that day and subsequently, the Friends of Freshwater was born....Continue reading

14.01.2022 SUBLIME SUNDAY IN FRESHIE COMMUNITY GARDEN AND OUR PLANT PROPAGATION STRUCTURE TAKES SHAPE An enthusiastic band of community gardeners with a strong commitment to sustainable living, gathers in Freshie Community Garden on two Sundays per month. Our endeavour includes chores such as aerating compost bins, mowing lawns and edges, painting, weeding and planting. We are also constructing a plant propagation structure with a mix of recyclable materials, found items from council c...lean-ups and dumpster bins as well as generous donations from organisations such a Bunnings and Freshwater Community Bank. All the labour has been provided by our gardeners and we gather a lot from each other’s company, particularly in these COVID times. We are indebted to the Commonwealth Department of Industry, Environment and Science that provided a small grant for this project and to The Office of Zali Steggall, our Federal MP, that facilitated it. Last Sunday we clad the structure with polycarbonate sheeting to ensure that the strong southerly winds that sweep through the Garden do not play havoc with the plants that will be grown inside. Next, we will roof the structure with salvaged glass and tile the floor with recycled marble. We welcomed Lauren, Annie, Bella, Mary, Eva and Julia to our unique gardening community. We hope your stay will be enjoyable.

14.01.2022 FRESHWATER VILLAGE DEVELOPMENT PROPOSAL SHOULD YOU WISH TO MAKE A SUBMISSION EITHER ON LINE OR BY LETTER DA2020/0543 50 Lawrence St., Freshwater... Submissions close 3rd July 2020 This is the Friends of Freshwater list of objections for this proposed development. The proposed part 4 storeys and 12m height exceed the LEP limits of 3 storeys and 11m. Non-compliant with the DCP landscaped area requirement. 25% of the site required/small rooftop garden only proposed. The residential component of the proposal dominates the site. This is inconsistent with the land use B2 zoning which requires the provision of a range of retail, business, entertainment and community uses that serve the needs of people who live in, work in and visit the local area. A development disproportionately comprising 70m2 allocated to commercial use and 900m2 allocated to residential use cannot achieve the intended outcomes of the B2 zoning. The sheer bulk of the building overshadows the neighbouring property to the south. The proposed development is totally out of character with the heritage buildings to its north and the Freshwater Village in general. The proposed on-site parking allocation is 2 spaces short of the DCP parking requirement. 21 required/19 provided. The addition of an extra access driveway in Dowling Street contravenes the intent of the Freshwater DCP to improve pedestrian safety in the Village. The proposal requires the removal/relocation of the accessible 139 bus stop in Dowling Street, adversely impacting public transport access for able bodied and disabled public transport commuters to the commercial centre of Freshwater.

14.01.2022 A reminder to all interested in our local community to come and join in our AGM and get together TONIGHT at 7pm! We will review and discuss the past activities and any future points of interest that are relevant to us all. Due to the limitations of public meetings and to keep our community safe, the meeting will be held online. See details here: https://freshie.org.au///24/friends-of-freshwater-inc-agm/

13.01.2022 The Duke January / February 2020 - https://mailchi.mp/56acbbc92/the-duke-january-february-2020

12.01.2022 The Duke - November / December 2019 - https://mailchi.mp/5c5030e9/the-duke-november-december-2019

10.01.2022 SOLDIERS AVE of HONOUR CENTENARY - https://mailchi.mp/81b1978/soldiers-ave-of-honour-centenary

09.01.2022 Jacka Park Public Toilet Construction soon to Commence! Please see Mayor Michael Regans Message below. Michael Regan to Friends Of Freshwater Inc. 3 hrs ... FINALLY - A toilet at Jacka Park! Something that has been requested for many a year now (and was budgeted to be done the year the amalgamation happened) is now about to happen. Yes -The toilet at Jacka Park is about to get built. Here is the advice from staff this afternoon. "Ive been advised that we have received today, approval from Sydney Water to connect to their existing services, so we (Council) will carry out that work this side of Christmas with an aim of starting the construction works in March/ April 2020.!" I know.. better late than never. Thank you all for your support and for pushing us to deliver. #abouttime #overdue See more

09.01.2022 THE LATEST EDITION OF THE DUKE (JULY/AUGUST 2020) IS NOW PUBLISHED, with updates on the Beach Reserve Master Plan and its components including:- # the future of the former Diggers Eastern Car Park # Surfing Reserve Memorial Upgrade # Public Art for McKillop Park Lookout... # South Curl Curl Coastal Walkway Extension # Naming the Walk in honour of Harry Eliffe # Freshwater Village DA for 50 Lawrence Street, unsupported by Council after 40 submissions by concerned residents and the FOF. # Native Bees in Freshie Community Garden See attached!! https://freshie.org.au/2020/08/13/the-duke-july-august-2020/ It isn also posted on our website at www.freshie.org.au and on mail chimp.

08.01.2022 Freshwater on Anzac Day Not the usual exuberant day, but quietly reflective and respectful. Thanks to the Harbord Diggers RSL Sub Branch for all the local organisation.

07.01.2022 The Duke June 2020 - https://mailchi.mp/8d2683cf7055/the-duke-june-2020

07.01.2022 NATIVE BEES IN OUR GARDEN Freshie Community Garden is now home to two colonies of Australia Native Stingless Bees (known as tetragonula or sugar bag bees). Pollinating plants is their main activity and 70% of the food that we consume is pollinated by bees including all of our fruit and vegetables. Look around our garden and you will find these hardy, small and dark bees, constantly at work on our macadamia, strawberries, nasturtium, grevillea, and lillipillies as well as all... our citrus. Unlike their European counterpart, their smaller size allows them to pollinate tiny, hard-to-reach blossoms. Our coastal location is ideal for them and they can work within a radius of 150 metres sometimes extending to 500 metres. One important role for our garden is native bee conservation, as their natural hives in the suburban tree scape are disappearing. We will constantly need to plant native flowering plants for them to pollinate. It has now been discovered by University of QLD scientists that the honey generated from stingless bees contains a rare form of sugar which has significant health benefits. It has a much lower GI than regular sugar. Indigenous people have long claimed health benefits from native honey and now there is the science to back up those claims. In high end restaurants, sugar bag honey is widely prized for its taste and can fetch up to $200 per kg, despite being produced in a far more unregulated way than standard honey.

06.01.2022 UNUSED JACKA PARK WORKERS SHED RECYCLED AS A MUCH NEEDED PUBLIC TOILET AMENITY After an 8 -year campaign mounted by the Friends of Freshwater and the Soldiers Avenue Stakeholders Group, a community toilet has finally been opened for use in Jacka Park. Jacka Park, despite being heavily used by schoolchildren, playground toddlers and for picnics and commemorations, has never had a toilet in its more than 30 years as a public green space. Whenever an event was held, portable to...ilets had to be hired. A previously unused Workers Shed was proposed by FOF for conversion as a ready-made alternative. Unfortunately, our requests were constantly rebuffed by Council, as there were apparently more pressing priorities on its Capital Projects List. With the assistance of our Curl Curl Ward Councillors including Mayor Michael Regan, work began recently. The new amenity has disabled access, baby change facilities and outdoor hygiene basin. A special pathway has been created to enable ease of access for prams and wheelchairs. The amenity is time locked and designed to open at sunrise and close at sunset. This is another good example of our Freshie community and Council working closely together. Feel free to pay a visit and spend a penny.

05.01.2022 DEFACED PUBLIC ART IN FRESHWATER VILLAGE HAS BEEN REPAINTED A few months ago a locally commissioned piece of public art was defaced by graffiti taggers. This painting in Freshwater Village Plaza was done by artists from the Bayapa Studio in Brookvale as a result of a public art grant gained by the Friends of Freshwater. It depicts the interaction of whales in their annual migration past Freshwater Beach and the proximity of local surfers. It was discovered that the tagging h...ad destroyed the integrity of the piece and it had to be largely redone again by the same artists. On this occasion it has also been covered with a layer of anti-graffiti paint to ward off any further tags. Many thanks to Councils Curl Curl Ward Place Co-ordinator. Deb Richardson-Bull, for getting this fixed.

05.01.2022 MY COMMUNITY PROJECT VOTING CLOSES ON THURSDAY 15 AUGUST. PLEASE SUPPORT US AND LODGE YOUR VOTE FOR THE REVITALISATION OF SOLDIERS AVENUE OF HONOUR. If you have voted, respond by the word " DONE". THE VOTING PROCESS REQUIRES YOU TO HAVE YOUR MEDICARE CARD ON HAND AS PROOF OF IDENTITY. AS A MANLY VOTER. THE VOTING LINK IS BELOW IN A PREVIOUS POST.

04.01.2022 Harbord Scouts Christmas Tree Sale on today and tomorrow ( and next weekend) at Freshwwater Senior Campus

04.01.2022 THE DUKE - June 2019 https://mailchi.mp/4a7d5ff51f4e/the-duke-june-2019-social

03.01.2022 Notification of new Main Street - DA application for 50 Lawrence St - https://mailchi.mp//notification-of-new-main-street-da-app

02.01.2022 The Duke August 2019 - https://mailchi.mp/59c85e09b4f2/the-duke-august-2019

02.01.2022 Jakka Park New Facilities open - https://mailchi.mp/37625f266/jakka-park-new-facilities-open

01.01.2022 Latest NSW Department of Health Heat Map Statistics for COVID 19 for Post Code 2096. for 15 May: Total Cases: 14 Active Cases: 4... Recovered Cases: 10 Total People Tested: 896 Recently Tested: 320 Total Population: 14,657

01.01.2022 ONE OF THE LAST ORIGINAL FRESHIE BEACH HOUSES TO BE DEMOLISHED The Friends of Freshwater has been closely following the progress of a contentious DA (DA 2017/0977 and MOD 2019/0563) for the demolition of a beach house at 14 Bridge Road ( commonly know as the Blue Cottage) (see photo) and the construction of a contemporary residence. This property is on a valuable parcel of land abutting the end of the former Angel Caf site in Queenscliff. The site has unparalleled views of F...reshwater Beach. Local property owners objected to the development in its original form due to its excessive height and bulk, as well as its unacceptable impact on the similar expansive views from their properties. Council responded positively to these concerns and engaged in detailed consultation with the applicant to address these issues. Fortunately, the applicant recognised the adverse impacts of the original proposal on neighbours and submitted a Modification which included the removal of a full floor to address both the height and bulk objections and further reductions in roof height to minimise the impact on views. These modifications were to the satisfaction of Council and the Application has been recommended for approval. This is occurring at the same time as the Angel Cafe heritage site is being redeveloped. The Friends of Freshwater have a commitment to fairly scrutinise all significant DAs lodged for Freshwater property.